Shinde refutes allegations of 'unsafe' Delhi

Weeks after Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit hit out at the police and called Delhi "unsafe for women", Union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde stood up for the police in Lok Sabha and rejected suggestions that this was accurate.

Shinde told the Lok Sabha that neither had anyone declared Delhi unsafe for women nor was this an accurate description. However, he emphasised that the government was ready to discuss crimes against women and the mid-December gang rape in Parliament.

Earlier, in response to a series of questions on the deteriorating crime situation vis-a-vis women, minister of state for home Mullappally Ramachandran had said the government had taken a number of steps for the safety and security of women in the city, including intensive patrolling and creation of women help desks.

He added the Home Ministry has recommended creation of 1,950 posts of women constables in Delhi Police, for which the Finance Ministry has been approached. He also said the city police will get 370 patrol vans and efforts were on to upgrade the police control room.

As part of the 'safe city project', 5,000 CCTV cameras would be installed to upgrade security.